Tiger Shroff is ready to roar

That he is making his Bollywood debut has been a rumour since the time he was in high school. But he stayed mum. Now that he is actually venturing into films, Tiger Shroff is contractually bound to not speak to the media before he is given the go-sign by the producer. To add to our woes, his celebrated father, actor Jackie Shroff, is busy shooting at a place where his cellphone is not reachable.

However, his mother, Ayesha, turns out to be our saving grace as she’s willing to talk about her son. “Tiger never wanted to become an actor. He was very keen to get into athletics and play professional basketball but it still has a while to go in our country. And he is so attached to his home and the country that he didn’t want to go to the US,” Ayesha says of her 22-year-old son, who is being launched by filmmaker Sajid Nadiadwala in Heropanti.

Ask her about Tiger’s acting prowess, and she says, “His father has a tremendous screen presence and our son has the same quality. That is his gift.” A perfectionist since childhood, Tiger has been pursuing martial arts since he was five-years-old, and was a star athlete in school.

“He is crazy about fitness. He is very disciplined and doesn’t even take a day off from his exercise regime,” says Ayesha, who also mentions that Tiger has been training hard since the last eight months focussing on his body, acting, diction, and dancing for his film.

The handsome, demigod-like boy, “is a reserved kind of person, reveals the doting mom. “He has a crazy, wry kind of humour. But when you get to know him, he is a friend for life,” she says. “Despite being from a film family,” says Ayesha, “Tiger has had a regular upbringing. He is a very level headed boy, who knows how to handle things. And so he knows the kind of expectations there are from him.” Meet the familyTiger’s father is none other than actor Jackie Shroff and his mother is actor-turned-producer Ayesha Shroff. His dad is known for his flamboyant style and power-packed performances in movies such as Hero, Karma, Ram Lakhan, Tridev, Parinda, and Gardish to name a few. His mother is known for having financed movies such as Grahan, Boom and Sandhya. Tiger also has a younger sister named Krishna, who is currently studying in Dubai.

Mom speaksTiger never wanted to be an actor. He was very keen to become an athlete. He wanted to play basketball professionally but that can’t happen in India He knows that there are so many expectations from him. It just adds to a lot of pressure. For someone who comes from a film family, he is very level headed.

Film experts say...Joginder Tuteja, trade analyst: Expect Tiger to be a sensation. He has really gone through a rigorous grooming. He has spared nothing to hone his skills.SMM Ausaja, film historian: He has inherited his father’s traits. He’d create a buzz with his screen presence. He has killer looks and great personality.